How Many of Your Life Goals Involve Cheese?
My first year was bad. Really bad. Probably worse than this guy's:
In lieu of a proper post, I will impart to you my hard-earned knowledge. There will be plenty of clichés thrown in, so bear with me.
1. You will probably never have any idea what you’re doing but neither did some of the greatest, most EPIC characters in fiction:
And that’s ok. I've talked to seniors, recent graduates, grad students, professors and the almost-unanimous opinion among them is that it'll be a long time till you’re comfortable with what you’re doing, till you can say that you have a feel for where your life is headed. So, go with the flow. Be spontaneous. Work hard but keep your options open. Yeah, well-worn clichés and all that but they’re true for the most part. Merry and Pippin were just hungry goddamit but they became the daringest creatures in all of Middle Earth.
Not to flog a dead horse, but Bill and Ted were probably the most clueless fictional kids ever and they TRAVELED THROUGH TIME.
2. Have a plan (or, lists are your friend):
It’s hard to have a plan when you have no idea where your life’s headed. But it’s quite unlikely that you’ll have a badass wizard pop up at some point in your life to give your life meaning. So if you’re confused about what you want to do academically, ask yourself: “Where do I see myself in ten years?” It doesn’t have to be a specific occupation but think about where you want to work/live in or what kind of activity you see yourself doing. Be as honest with yourself as possible because whatever makes you happy may not necessarily correspond with your parents' wishes. Look at your answer and think about how you can get where you want to be. List what majors and extracurriculars might help you get there. Plan out your next two years at least. Don’t be this guy (me):
Pro-tip: Make a bucket list of things you want to do in college. Fun things like cross-country road trips, Mardi Gras, or even a trip to the Loj. Do them.
3. Travel (or, how I learned that hamburgers are made of beef and cheeseburgers aren’t only made of cheese):
Freshman year, I really wanted to travel but I kept making dumb excuses: "Long weekend, huh. I could go to Blah Blah but I have a test the following week. Might as well stay on campus, watch Netflix and regret my decisions FOREVER."
You don’t have to go a different country, travel across the country or even board a plane. Travel - regardless of the distance - teaches life skills, such as how misleading food names can be. Don’t be clueless like Freshman Me.
Pro-tip: If you’re an international student and have to traverse thousands of miles to get home, plan a stopover in a city of your choice. Or book a multi-city flight. Arrange flights so that your stopover is about a couple of days long or however long you want it to be. Get a transit visa and explore the city. Awww yissss.
4. Go to professors’ office hours (or, brofessors exist):
If you like a professor, go talk to them. You could prepare for it by looking at their research and talking about what interests them. Or you could just have a casual conversation. Professors want to know their students and going to their office hours, in a way, shows them that you like them.
Also, introducing triple-jumbo Doctor Proctor.
5. Procrastination is bad (or, how the Internet broke me):
High School Sadiaa had her act together. College Sadiaa, not so much. And the single most powerful force in my downfall was the Internet (one might say I was my own worst enemy but I don’t feel like being poetic or owning up to my failures).
The Internet is a fickle lover. He reels you in but leaves you drained, dazed and confused. We've all seen the memes, the countless Buzzfeed posts about a college student’s love affair with procrastination. It never ends well.
So, say no to Netflix/Tumblr/Facebook. Do your work well before it’s due. Win at life.
6. Late-night trips to the vending machine will wreak havoc on your waistline and your wallet (or, how I never got rid of the Freshman 15).
Self-explanatory. Stock up on food from Hodgdon (Trick-turning!).